Police plan to carry Narcan for heroin ODs

Camden County Police Officer Stephen Vezich holds Narcan nasal spray near the where he administered Narcan to a person who was unconscious due to a drug overdose on Mickle Blvd. in Camden on Thursday. 04.30.15(Photo: Chris LaChall/Courier-Post)

Narcan — the easily administered heroin and opioid antidote — soon will be in every West Lafayette police car and firetruck by the end of the month, and Tippecanoe County Sheriff Barry Richards hopes to follow suit soon.

West Lafayette seemed an unlikely city for heroin use — and hence, the need for Narcan — until earlier this year, West Lafayette police Chief Jason Dombkowski and fire Chief Tim Heath said Monday.

“That really came home to us in February,” Dombkowski said. “There was an overdose of a Purdue University student. It caused us to re-evaluate and look at what we’re doing in the city of West Lafayette.

“In learning of that whole situation, we started looking at how to prevent that from happening again.”

Heroin overdoses have increased in Tippecanoe County, Coroner Donna Avolt said earlier this year, and the trend has not shown any signs of reversing.

In the last week of February and first few days of March, Avolt reported that seven people had overdosed on heroin — five fatally.

In 2014, there were 29 accidental overdose deaths in Tippecanoe County — four of which were from heroin, Avolt said in an Aug. 17 Journal & Courier story.

The trend was a call to action for Richard, who on Monday announced an initiative similar to West Lafayette’s.

“I believe with the deputies carrying Narcan, should it be used one time and save one life, everything is well worth the effort on our department.”

One benefit of Narcan, Richard said, is that it counteracts only opioids and will not harm a patient not overdosing on heroin.

Narcan, however, could put the patient in “severe respiratory distress,” Avolt said. Therefore, whoever administers the drug needs to be trained on how to respond to the side effect, she said.

In Lafayette, police Chief Patrick Flannelly said his department has looked into carrying Narcan but does not plan to equip officers with it at this time.

Lafayette Police Department decided not to carry Narcan because Tippecanoe Emergency Ambulance Service paramedics typically arrive at the scene about the same time as police, and paramedics can administer the antidote, he said.

“I’m confident the level of care we have is sufficient,” Flannelly said.

Ultimately, he said, the community must come together to solve the problem of heroin use.

Dombkowski, too, indicated a need for support for heroin users beyond intervention by police and paramedics.

For instance, he said, Indianapolis social workers follow up with patients to whom police have administered Narcan. The social service intervention, Dombkowski said, has helped reduce the recidivism rate of heroin users.